A presentation given by Dr Samantha Chaperon and James Kennell from the Economic Development Resource Centre, at a seasider meeting at DCLG on 7th December 2010
Seaside Town Regeneration Through Local Enterprise Partnerships
1. Seaside towns and Local Enterprise Partnerships James Kennell & Samantha Chaperon Economic Development Resource Centre Business School University of Greenwich
Much research on peripherality has been discussed in terms of rural areas and islands, usually for the developing world and usually quite exotic places, Some in the Caribbean such as Trinidad and Tobago, Antigua and Barbuda, St Kitts and Nevis. Seaside towns are rarely, if ever, discussed as being peripheral places, but by definition they are, and they often exhibit the common issues associated with this. ‘ Peripherality’ as a spatial notion - ‘periphery’ represents an area’s outer limits or edge, usually a long distance from a centre. Perceived ‘peripherality’ – perceived as a periphery due to inaccessibility (poor transport links). A destination that is further away but with excellent motorway or rail links is perceived as less peripheral than somewhere closer that does not have these links ‘ Peripherality’ as an economic notion - Characteristics of peripheral places: (economic)Limited market opportunities Industry in decline Lack of public and private capital (social)Close-knit communities Lacking in education and training Small, declining or ageing population (governance)Failure of private decision-making systems In modern parlance, to describe something as peripheral is often to dismiss it as unimportant and of no interest to the majority POSITIVE Peripheral places often possess tourism attributes that tourists are looking for as they aren’t available at the core– the sea, the sand, the traditional, feeling of ‘getting away from it all’
Because of the characteristics of peripheral areas that have been identified, peripheral areas usually find themselves in a dependent relationship with the core. Three key types of dependency: 1. usually dependent on their respective cores for their tourists – their key market. On a global scale, the developed core is said to be the home of the world’s tourists that holiday in peripheral tourist destinations, creating what has been termed the ‘pleasure periphery’ (Turner & Ash, 1976). In much the same way, Britain’s seaside resorts have historically developed as a ‘pleasure periphery’ for those working and living in urban centres. 2. Usually dependent on their respective cores for allocation of government funding and often private investment too In terms of capital, due to a weak local economic base. 3. Usually dependent on their respective cores for their governance, so political decision-making usually happens at the core, with varying degrees of representation from people at the periphery
Based on these elements of dependency, we can say that seaside towns are in what’s termed a ‘core-periphery relationship’ , a theory that is most closely associated with dependency theory Core-periphery theory (CPT) provides a fundamentally geographical framework to comprehend spatial disparities. This is useful for seaside towns in order to identify disparities in levels of: Governance (location of power) Funding (investment and other funding sources) Development (where is being considered a priority?) CPT has often been applied on a global scale in terms of the developed core and the developing periphery, and has also been used to some extent in terms of mainland cores and peripheral islands, but much less in terms of the domestic level and not for seaside towns. CPT can help to highlight the relationship that seaside towns have with a) each other and b) any apparent cores. It’s a useful framework to apply to identify any instances of neglect or exploitation CPT highlights areas of dependence and structural inequality that can inform policy on a spatial basis To apply CPT in the LEP context requires a strategic overview that only central government can provide Applying CPT in this domestic tourism context offers areas of future research focus
The new LEPs do not recognise the Peripherality of seaside towns as a key element in sub-regional growth or conceive of them in non-dependent terms. The new LEPs are not innovative in terms of tourism development for seaside towns, relying on outdated ideas of growth The LEP model does not , in itself, offer a brighter future for tourism to seaside towns, or for their development in other regards.